HomeMy WebLinkAboutPC_Minutes_1967_04_10MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF THE PLANNING COMMISSION held at the City of
Hermosa Beach, Ca 1 i forn i a, in the Council Chambers at 7: 30 p .m., on Monday,
Ap r i l l O , l 96 7 .
ROLL CALL -Present: Comm. Armer, Reeves, Noble, Boice, Hales, Hamilton,
Chairman Viault; Bud M. Trott, Building & Planning Director
Absent: None
Comm. Armer and Comm. Noble were seated after
approval of minutes.
Chairman Viault made a motion to approve the minutes of March 13, 1967, motion
seconded by Comm. Reeves, and carried unanimously.
The first item on the agenda, public hearing of zone variance application by
Kenneth and Mary Busche, required the presence of all the Commissioners at
the request of the applicants. Since all the Commissioners were not present
at this time, Chairman Viault asked that Item 2 be delayed for the moment,
and the following item be heard at this time, public hearing for Dudley Jacobs.
DUDLEY JACOBS -ZONE VARIANCE
Public hearing, Zone Variance application by Dudley Jacobs on property located
at 702 Strand, lot I, block 8, Hermosa Beach tract. Request to add on to an
existing nonconforming building having three units, in lieu of required max-
imum of two units; extend lower floor to front property line two ft. on south and
four ft. on north side, maintaining same nonconforming sideyards of 2 1 611
on north side and on property line of south side (approximately 81 sq. ft.
addition) in lieu required three ft. side yards; having three nonconforming
garages with approximately seven ft. wide doors in lieu of required eight ft.,
and inside width of 23 ft. in lieu of required 25,5 ft.
Comm. Boice took over as Secretary at this point in the meeting, because Comm.
Reeves had lost his voice.
The applicant, Mr. Jacobs, was present to speak and explained that he was
requesting this variance to enlarge his home so that he might accomodate a pool
table in one room. He told the Commission that he had ample parking space to
accomodate a number of cars, after questions about garage facilities. Speaking
in favor of the application, Mrs. Joan Greenwald of 711 Hermosa Avenue, stated
that she did not believe any of the neighbors objected. Mrs. Chase of 636
Strand asked about possible projection into the sideyards. The public hearing
was closed and the Commissioners discussed the matter.
Motion was made by Comm. Boice, seconded by Comm. Armer, to grant the variance,
and the motion carried unanimously.
Motion was made by Comm. Noble, seconded by Comm. Boice, to adopt P.C. 154-606
granting the Variance for the reasons that it has been deemed by the Commission
that this request is not detrimental to the neighborhood and will not affect the
health or safety of any of the surrounding neighbors; and it appears not to be
in conflict with the General Plan; and that it be granted with the provision
that the extension on the west property line is not extended any further than
that of the existing extension of the second story.
Planning Commission Page 2 Ap r i l l O , l 96 7
JACOBS CONT:
Motion t o adop t P.C. 154-606 carri ed by unanimous vo te.
BUSCHE -CONTINUED ACTION ON ZONE VARIANCE
The Secreta~v read correspondence from Hinton and Minton, Attorneys at Law,
who rep re sent ed Mr. and Mrs. Busche. Mr. Hinton spoke for the applicants
and advised th e Commission tha t the st airway in question as specified on
the original application for Zone Var iance on the property at 255 and 257 28th
Str eet , lots 17 and 19, Block 114, Shakespear e tract, would be placed in a
different locat ion. The Var i ance would be a r e quest for lot r e -di vis io n and
f or the noncon forming ga rage primarily.
The Commission discussed the Va r iance, and quest ioned the applicants aga in.
Comm. Noble made a motion, seconded by Comm. Boi ce , to r esc ind the motion t o
grant the Varian ce mad e at the me e ting of March 13, 1967. Motion ca rried by
unanimous vote.
Motion was the n mad e to grant the Variance, by Comm . Noble, and seconded by
Comm. Boice. Moti on carried as foll ows:
AYES:
NOES:
ABSENT:
Comm. Nobl e , Boice, Hamilton, Viault (Chairman)
Comm, Armer , Reeves, Hales
None
Comm. Ar mer gave his rea son for voting 11 No11 tha t this Planning Commission should
use every me ans at its disposal to upgrade this commu nity. Comm. Hales gave his
reason for voting 11 No11 that this is still leaving an over-usage o f living units
of fo ur ra ther t han a normal two in an R-2 Zone.
Comm. Noble sai d that his reason for voting 11 Yes 11 would be th e same a s Comm;
Armer's reason for voting 11 No.11
Motion to adopt P.C. 154-60 7 wa s made by Comm. Noble, seconde d by Comm. Boice,
to redivide lots 17 and 19, Bloc k 114, Shakespeare tract into two separa t e lots
a s origi na l lots of record per land use map of Hermosa Beach, and grant in g on
lot 17 an addition to an existing single family structure having nonconforming
garage with ins ide mea sur ements o f 17 1 311 i n lieu of the r eq uired 18 ft., and
wi t h the provision t hat on lot 19 the exis t ing gara g e, now b e ing us e d for living
quarters , be convert ed back in t o available garage fac ility wit h in one year of
the date of granti ng this Variance, or soone r, and that the nece ssary covenant
be f il ed wi th the City of Hermo sa Beach assuring that t h is will be done wi t hin
the time lim i t specified. The rea son for granting being that it has bee n
determined by the ~ajori ty of the Plannin g Commission t hat thi s is a f easible
solution to an ex isti ng problem in spit e of the fact tha t there are non
c onformities now in existence, and it does not appear to be of any futur e
detri me n t to the s urrounding p r o perties .
Planning Commission Page 3 April 10, 1967
BUSCHE CONT:
Motion carried by the following vote:
AYES: Comm. Noble, Boice, Hales, Chairman Viault
NOES: Comm. Armer, Reeves, Hales (Comm. Hales stated that his reason
for voting 11 Nol 1 be the same as originally stated in the motion
to grant).
ABSENT: None
PHINNY -ZONE VARIANCE
Public hearing on Zone Variance for
at 341 I Strand, lot 1, Dale Tract.
building and nonconforming use, 435
of required ma~imum of one unit.
Eleanor and Sherman Phinny. Property situated
Request to add to an existing nonconforming
sq. ft., having existing two units in lieu
Mr. and Mrs. Phinny were present and told the Commission that they wished to
enlarge a bedroom, as their present facilities were too small. They felt they
would be upgrading the community by the improvements they proposed to make.
Their contractor, represented by Fabian Abraams, also spoke. Speaking in
favor of the application were Mrs. Warren Miller, of 3417 Strand, and Mr.
Dick Seaton of 111 34th Street. No one spoke in opposition.
Questions were asked, and there was more discussion about the dimensions
of the enlargement and how the sideyards would be affected. Motion was made
by Comm. Hales, seconded by Comm. Reeves, to grant the Variance and the
motion carried by unanimous vote.
Motion was then made by Comm. Hales, seconded by Comm. Armer, to adopt P.C.
154-608 granting the Variance for the following reasons:
1. No exterior change would be made that would affect the neighbors or
change sideyards or setbacks.
2. The plan as proposed wi 11 be an architecturally visual improvement to
the neighborhood.
3. The irn~rovements will meet architectural standards of the immediate
neighborhood.
4. Present use of the land will be in keeping and wi 11 not affect the
General Plan.
Motion carried by unanimous vote.
GOBEL -ZONE VARIANCE
Public hearing of Zone Variance for Bruce H. and Pauline Gobel. Property at
838, 844 and 846 Bard Street; lots 2, 3 and 4, Block S, Tract 2002. Request
to convert single family residence to two units by the addition of kitchen
facilities. The additional unit has 426 sq. ft. in lieu of required 500 sq.
ft. One garage exists instead of the required two garages. This conversion
applies to three separate single family residences on three separate lots.
It was explained that the propert~ in question were at present three duplexes,
originally built as three single residences in October 1953, and had been
converted to duplexes after final building inspection, without proper garage
facilities, proper floor area for converted units, and without building permits.
Planning Commission Page 4 Apr i 1 IO, 1967
GOBEL CONT:
Mr. Gobel was present and tol d the Commission that he was made aware o f
these facts at t he time he came to the Building Department recently to
s ecure s ome permi ts . He f urther explained that to lose t he use of these
buildings as dupl exes , would creat a great financial hard ship . Mrs . Gobel
was also present and said that it was not f easible from a bu ilding standpoi n t
to c onvert the dupl exes back into single residences , a nd that it appea red
the buildings had be e n originally built with a layout which sugges t ed t hey
would become duplexes.
The Commission questione d Mr. and Mrs. Gobel about parking facilities, and
the ap p li c ants r eplied that any parki ng problems which existed on the street
were due to some ex tent to the narrowness of the street, and t hat their own
t ena nts wer e advised to alw ays use their garage s.
Speaking in favor of the application was Mr. Jan Darien of 821 Bard. Mr. Darian
stated that he recalled the property had been set up as duplex e s as lon g ago
as eleven years, since the p revi ous own er had worked for hi m. Also in favo r
of the a p plication was Mrs. Gertrude Miller of 1934 Prospect.
Speaking against the application was Mrs. W. E. Ston e of 706 Sapphire, Redondo
Beach , and her two so ns, Ch este r and Robert.
Moti on to grant the variance wa s made by Comm. Viault, seconded by Comm. Armer,
and failed to carry by the following vote:
AYES:
NOES:
PAS S;
ABSENT:
Comm. Boice (bec ause a hardship for the owner has beeh s hown)
Comm. Ar mer , Reeves, Hal es, Hamilton, Chairman Viaul·t
Comm. Noble (because the tes timony and dis c ussion was somewhat
ambiguous a nd it was difficult to give a 11 yes 11 or 1 1 no11 vot e therefore.
None
Motion to adopt P.C. 154-609 to de ny th e applica t ion for Variance, was made by
Comm. Hales and seco nded by Comm. Armer, for the fo llowin g reasons:
1. That i t would l e gally pe rmit a subs tandard siz ed apartme nt by mi nu s 74 sq. ft.
in lieu of the requi red 500 sq. f t .
2. That the proposed additional apar t ment for each building, lack gar ag e facilities.
Motion c arried by the f o llowing vote:
AYES :
NOES:
PASS:
ABSENT:
Comm. Arme r, Re e ves, Hales, Hamilton, Chairman Viau lt
C OfTITI. Bo i c e
Comm. Nobl e
None
Planning Commission Page 5 Ap r i 1 l O , 196 7
MANN AND HARRIS -CONDITIONAL USE IP'ERMIT
Public hearing for Conditional Use Permit to allow child day nursery with
maximum of twenty children. Approximately 1200 sq. ft. of floor area, and
providing three accessible parking stalls and three tandem stalls. Applicants
Mrs. Victoria Mann and Mrs. C. Harris. Property at 44 Hermosa Ave.,
lots 2 and 3, block 41, first addition to Hermosa Beach tract.
Mrs. Mann and Mrs. Harris were present to speak and advised the Commission
that they felt their proposed use of the property would be a benefit to
the community. They were questioned as to the number of employees,
type of landscaping and controls which would be utilized.
Motion to grant the Conditional Use was made by Comm. Noble and seconded
by Comm. Boice. Motion carried by unanimous vote.
Motion to adopt P.C. 154-610 granting the Conditional Use application was
made by Comm. Noble, seconded by Comm. Boice, and that it be granted for
the reasons that the requested use will not be detrimental to the ·surrounding
area; and all provisions as required by the County Welfare Agency, County
Health Department and State Fire Marshall will control the proposed use of
this property; and that it will add to the beautification of this end of
Hermosa Beach. Motion carried by unanimous vote.
* *
Comm. Boice was obliged to leave the meeting for a business appointment, and
Comm. Hales took over the duties of Reading Secretary.
WAYUP ART GALLERY
Review plans for signs for Wayup Art Gallery located at ill Pier Avenue.
Dr. Salk was present to speak for the association concerned with this art
gallery, and to request a 60 day extension from the date of installation
of the banners, until such time that a more permanent sign could be
placed at this location. He explained that the members of this group
could only work on week-ends and therefore they had been delayed with respect
to their opening etc.
Photographs of the banners were displayed to the Commission, and Chairman
Viault said that he was not too pleased with the appearance of the banners
since the wind had wrapped them about the poles upon which they were hung.
Dr. Salk said that they were working on this problem,
Motion was made by Comm. Hales, seconded by Comm. Reeves, that the Wayup
Art Gallery be granted a 60 day extension from the date of installation,
for the use of these temporary banner type signs, and that at the next
regular meeting of the Planning Commission (May 8, 1967) the applicants
come to the Planning Commission with their plan for a permanent sign display.
Motion carried by following vote:
AYES:
NOES:
ABSENT:
Comm. Armer, Reeves, Noble, Hales, Hamilton
Chairman Viault
Comm. Boice (left meeting early)
Planning Commission Page 6 April ID, 1967
Chairman Viault suggested that due to the lateness of the hour, items
8, JO and 13 on the Agenda be held over until another meeting on Monday
April 17, 1967. Accordingly, motion was made by Chairman Viault,
seconded by Comm. Noble to discuss and take action on these matters
at adjourned meeting on April 17, 1967 at 7:30 p.m. Motion carried
unanimously.
These items are as follows:
Item 8 -Continuation of study and review of possible amendment of N.S. 154,
relating to businesses operating without attendants, open late at night,
and conducted partially or entirely in the open.
Item JO-Correspondence from Councilman Quentin Thelen relative to stepped
up program of upgrading housing standards. Referred to Planning Commission
for study and recommendations.
Item 13 -Redevelopment Plan of Goodkin Corp. referred to Planning Commission
by City Council for study and recommendations.
REPORT FROM JOHN STEVENS -RE RELOCATION OF CARNEGIE LANE AT HARPER AVE.
Received and filed.
LAND USE ELEMENT FROM MANHATTAN BEACH
Received and filed. Letter of appreciation to be written to Manhattan Beach.
JOHN AUST VARIANCE -LETTER REGARDING ACTION BY CITY COUNCIL
Received and filed.
Chairman Viault told the Commission about So. Calif. Planning Congress meeting
to be held in Pasadena on April 13, 1967, Comm. Armer requested that another
item be added to the adjourned meeting of April 17, 1967, this being
a report and discussion of zoning and building violations.
ADJOURNMENT: 10:30 P.M.
Robert Boice, Acting Secretary